Massachusetts Rises to 15th in CNBC’s 2026 Top States for Business Rankings

BOSTON — CNBC released its 20th annual ranking of America’s Top States for Business, which includes both positive and troubling news for Massachusetts. Massachusetts is ranked 15th overall, an improvement from last year’s ranking of 20th.

The Commonwealth continues to benefit from extraordinary long-term assets that few states can match. Massachusetts ranks first in education, sixth in access to capital, and eighth in technology and innovation, demonstrating that its research institutions, talent pipeline, investment ecosystem, and innovation economy remain among the strongest in the world.

At the same time, the rankings highlight persistent structural challenges. Massachusetts remains 49th in the nation for cost of doing business, while cost of living ranks 39th, reinforcing affordability as one of the Commonwealth’s defining economic challenges. Workforce also slipped from 23rd to 26th, reflecting the growing difficulty of attracting and retaining talent as housing and other living costs continue to rise.

CNBC’s analysis emphasizes that Massachusetts’ innovation economy continues to carry the state. CNBC recognizes the Commonwealth’s strengths in technology, education, capital formation, and advanced industries — including its growing defense technology and national security ecosystem.

At the same time, Massachusetts continues to experience one of the highest rates of domestic outmigration, losing 182,000 residents to other states since 2020, with many relocating to states offering a lower cost of living and doing business. Sustaining the Commonwealth’s leadership will require addressing the affordability pressures that increasingly influence where people choose to live, work, and invest.

“Massachusetts’ improvement to 15th nationally reflects the extraordinary strengths of our innovation economy, world-class universities, investment ecosystem, and highly educated workforce,” said Christopher Anderson, president of the Massachusetts High Technology Council. “But the rankings also make clear that these advantages continue to overcome — not solve — our competitiveness challenges.

“Ranking 49th in the nation for the cost of doing business should concern every policymaker,” he added. “Massachusetts succeeds because of our exceptional assets, not because we have created the most competitive business climate. Our opportunity is to translate these innovation strengths into a more competitive economic environment — one that is more affordable for families, more attractive to employers and entrepreneurs, and better-positioned to retain the talent that drives long-term economic growth.”

Maintaining Massachusetts’ position as one of the world’s leading innovation economies will require building on the Commonwealth’s extraordinary strengths while addressing the structural cost challenges identified in CNBC’s rankings. The Massachusetts High Technology Council will continue advancing data-driven policies that improve affordability, encourage private-sector investment, strengthen workforce development, expand housing opportunities, modernize tax and regulatory policies, and reinforce long-term economic competitiveness.